Leone: Reiseführer, Preise und kostenlose Unterkunft · 2026

ANAziz Nadjimutdinov29.11.2015Lesen

Day One. Well, here we are. America hasn't gone anywhere. Truly. And here it is, the grand return of a not-so-grand person. Because, honestly, who am I to America? Who are we all to this country? It's funny to think about. But that's not the point right now. Just like a year ago, I was met by my close friend Ruslan, someone with whom we are a piece of our homeland here for each other. Together with him, his friend, and another compatriot, we set off to "get things done." We drove quite a bit, by the way. You have to be very smart about roads in this city and know the best way to go, as the traffic is no joke. Just open Apple Maps and see the congestion. Sometimes it's easier to take a route 1.5-2 times longer but arrive significantly faster, because the short way is jammed. What has changed in this year of my absence? Nothing. As I said, New York absolutely doesn't care about those who arrive. (Well, except for the Mexicans. Without them, all of America would grind to a halt.) It lives its own life. It still runs, jumps, walks, drives, shouts, laughs, and most importantly, shines brightly at night. Right now, it really feels like nothing happened. I mean, those 8 months of waiting didn't exist, as if I fell asleep in New York on October 6th and woke up in the same place on May 17th, because now you look around and see the exact same life you saw 2/3 of a year ago. Without any changes. It even adds a touch of sentimentality. We first got to his work, where he set me up with a new SIM card, and then to his home. After dropping off my things and meeting the new member of Ruslan's family (yes, he recently had a daughter who managed to get scared of me, but it was sooo cute), I decided to set off to conquer the city once again. The first stop was the Manhattan Bridge, famous from the movie "Once Upon a Time in America." "Noodles, I slipped." - a phrase not as famous as the quote from The Godfather, but no less tragic. Although few will understand me now. Actually, Sergio Leone's film has always been one of my favorites since my early youth. And so I had wanted to visit this bridge for a long time. But anyway. It's interesting that there were quite a few tourists on that very bridge. And most of them were Asian. I always thought this landmark was mainly interesting to fans of the movie, but apparently, I was wrong, or maybe they are all fans. Who knows. The only problem with traveling alone is taking photos. I'm not a big fan of selfies against the backdrop of gorgeous landmarks, so I usually ask other people. But it's worth noting that both Americans and tourists are always ready to point a finger at the magic button even for strangers. I have helped others very often myself. And sometimes, when I see a group of two or three, I offer to take a group photo for them and ask them to take one of me in return. Is everyone happy? Of course. Looking ahead, I'll even tell you about one girl who managed to touch my soul. On my second day in New York, I was standing in Times Square and saw a cute (not just cute, but hot) girl of about 22 who was taking photos of herself on a timer, having placed her phone on a construction cone. I offered to help her, and she didn't speak a word of English. After the first photo, she asked for another, and then started scrolling through her album to show that she needed another photo in the "Follow me" style, where you hold hands. She grabbed my hand and dragged me toward the billboards. Well, I did everything, and she skipped away. And all I understood was that she was Argentine (I told you she was hot), but unfortunately, she was faster than me, so I didn't see her again. After the bridge, by the way, I needed to exchange money, as in my stupidity I only brought money in $100 bills. For those going for the first time - a tip: Take smaller bills, as few people here need $100. I went into several stores, and everywhere I was refused, and finally, in one pizzeria, a cook agreed and gave me five $20s. Although